Thursday, February 27, 2025

Men’s Notes: Down to Wire in Big Ten, ECAC Hockey Races

Atlantic Hockey Playoff Tourney Gets Underway Friday

League championships remain up for grabs in four of the six NCAA Division I men’s hockey conferences, and at least two of those will be determined this weekend.

The Big Ten and ECAC Hockey both wrap up their regular-season schedules this weekend, with Minnesota and Quinnipiac sitting in the driver’s seat of those respective conference races.

Minnesota used a home sweep of Ohio State last weekend to jump ahead of previous league leader Michigan State by two points. The Golden Gophers will close out the slate this weekend against Penn State, while the Spartans travel to Notre Dame in search of a second straight Big Ten title.

Quinnipiac, which leads second-place Clarkson by four points, can clinch a fifth straight ECAC regular-season title this weekend. Those two teams will clash head-to-head Friday at Clarkson with both teams playing their best hockey of the season; the Bobcats have won seven of their past eight games, while the hard-charging Golden Knights have won six in a row for the longest active winning streak in the country.

QU will travel to St. Lawrence Saturday, while Clarkson will close out at home against Princeton.

Holy Cross (Atlantic Hockey) and Minnesota State (CCHA) both secured their respective leagues’ titles last week (see below for more), while the Hockey East and NCHC races both remain up for grabs with two weeks remaining in those schedules.

Daily Scoreboard | Weekly Schedule | Stat Leaders | Goaltending Leaders

Must Read:

Boston Globe: Here’s how tightly bunched races are shaping up in Hockey East, ECAC, Atlantic Hockey

College Hockey News: Laubach’s rise helping Penn State’s surge

College Hockey News: Haymes’ return lifts Dartmouth for stretch run

College Hockey News: Much-improved Falcons heading towards CCHA Tournament with confidence

EP Rinkside: The Hobey Baker and Mike Richter awards races are still too close to call

FloHockey: New York Rangers prospect Brody Lamb standing out in junior year at Minnesota

FloHockey: Penn State riding high amid second-half surge led by Hobey hopeful

Grand Forks Herald: Carter Wilkie’s production heating up for UND

Minnesota Star Tribune: With a familiar name for Gophers fans, Hendrickson blossoms as a freshman

Schenectady Daily Gazette: Union announcer Matt Dubrey winning acute lymphocytic leukemia battle

The Athletic: Free agents for NHL teams 2025: Top college, CHL and European players

USCHO: Swan song approaching for Ferris State coach Daniels

USCHO: Colorado College planning for ‘a long run’

USCHO: Sorting out plethora of conference storylines as final weekend of regular season on tap

Must Hear:

CHN Insiders: Featuring Michigan State associate head coach Jared DeMichiel

College Hockey Today: It’s all happening

Inside Atlantic Hockey: Featuring Canisius head coach Trevor Large

Parting Schotts: Union coach Hauge reviews Harvard-Dartmouth games, previews Cornell-Colgate

The CCHA Show: Featuring Minnesota State head coach Luke Strand

The Reporter’s Corner: Featuring St. Thomas junior forward Lucas Wahlin

UND Hockey Podcast: UND wins eight straight vs. Minnesota Duluth

USCHO Weekend Review: Watching conference races, looking at movement along the PairWise bubble

Must Watch:

Hockey Prospects Radio: Featuring Colgate head coach Mike Harder

Hockey Prospects Radio: Featuring Brown head coach Brendan Whittet

Holy Cross Hangs a Banner:

For the first time since the 2005-06 season, Holy Cross has a regular-season conference championship.

The Crusaders defeated AIC 3-1 in Monday’s regular-season finale, securing the Atlantic Hockey title outright. Senior F Liam McLinskey (Pearl River, N.Y.) assisted on all three Holy Cross goals to wrap up the league’s scoring title with 39 points in 26 conference games.

No. 9 RIT at No. 8 AIC (Friday)
No. 10 Robert Morris at No. 7 Air Force (Saturday)
No. 11 Mercyhurst at No. 6 Canisius (Saturday)

The three winners will advance to the AHA Quarterfinals (March 7-9), where top seed Holy Cross will host the lowest-advancing seed, No. 2 Sacred Heart will welcome the second-lowest advancing seed, and No. 3 Bentley will host the third-lowest advancing seed.

No. 4 Niagara will host No. 5 Army in the other quarterfinal matchup.

Click HERE for more information.

More MacNaughton for Mavs:

Holy Cross wasn’t the only conference champion crowned last week. In the CCHA, Minnesota State clinched sole possession of its seventh MacNaughton Cup in eight years – and ninth in school history – following a road sweep at Lake Superior State.

MSU junior G Alex Tracy (Chicago, Ill.) stopped all but one of the 64 shots he faced in the series, including a 32-save shutout in Friday’s 4-0 win. He lowered his NCAA-leading goals against average to 1.46 in the process.

The CCHA will conclude its regular season this weekend, with Lake Superior State at Bowling Green, Northern Michigan at Ferris State, Bemidji State at Minnesota State, and Michigan Tech at St. Thomas. Augustana is idle.

Flyin’ Ryan:

Alaska Anchorage closed out its season last Saturday with a 1-0 win over Lindenwood. Freshman F Ryan Johnson (Calgary, Alberta) assisted on the game’s only goal, extending his season-ending point streak to 10 games.

Research dating back through the start of the 2002-03 season revealed it to be the longest UAA point streak during that time.

Johnson finished his season with 25 points in 33 games, tying Blake Tatchell (2012-13) for the Seawolves’ most prolific freshman output of the last 22 years.

Variety is the Spice of Life:

Michigan Tech senior F Alex Nordstrom (Atlantic Mine, Mich.) tallied a natural hat trick in Friday’s 6-1 win over Ferris State and did so by scoring one goal each at even strength, on the power play and while shorthanded.

According to MTU media relations director Calvin Larson, the last Huskie to record a hat trick in that same fashion was fellow Hancock (Mich.) High School alum Pete Rouleau in 2008.

After scoring just once in his first 22 games this season, Nordstrom has six goals in his last five outings.

Fit to Print:

“We’re here to try to be great. We’re not here to exist.”

— Western Michigan head coach Pat Ferschweiler (WMU ‘93) on the message he delivered to his Broncos – who currently sit atop the NCHC standings – at the start of the season (source: Minnesota Star Tribune).

NHL Note of the Week:

Vancouver F Kiefer Sherwood (Miami, 2015-18) leads the entire National Hockey League in hits, and it’s not particularly close.

Sherwood emerged from Wednesday’s tilt in Los Angeles having been credited with 314 hits in 54 games, putting him comfortably ahead of Columbus’ Mathieu Olivier, who had 220 in 58 contests. Sherwood has also delivered a career-high 13 goals in his first season with the Canucks.

A three-year NCAA standout at Miami, Sherwood ranked second on the RedHawks in scoring as both a sophomore and junior before signing a free-agent, entry-level contract with Anaheim.

Fries at the Bottom of the Bag:

McLinskey has figured in on eight of the last 10 Holy Cross goals and 10 of the last 14 … Quinnipiac’s power play is converting at 50 percent over its last four games, scoring a whopping 22 times in that span … Penn State head coach Guy Gadowsky’s (Colorado College ’89) next win will be the 400th of his NCAA coaching career. Bemidji State bench boss Tom Serratore (BSU ’87) reached that milestone last Friday with the Beavers’ 3-2 victory over Bowling Green … Denver senior F Jack Devine (Glencoe, Ill.) reached the 150-point plateau for his NCAA career in Saturday’s 5-2 win at Miami. Devine’s 151 career points rank second among all active NCAA Division I men’s players behind only Arizona State’s Lukas Sillinger (Gr., Regina, Saskatchewan), who has 157 … Boston College sophomore F Gabe Perreault (Hinsdale, Ill.) notched his 100th career point in Saturday’s 4-1 victory at Vermont … Western Michigan F Alex Bump (So., Prior Lake, Minn.) fired 14 shots on goal in Saturday’s 4-3 overtime win over Arizona State, tied for the most of any NCAA Division I men’s player this season. He leads the nation with 173 SOG in 30 games this season … Niagara F Tyler Wallace (So., Calgary, Alberta) won 22 faceoffs in Friday’s 6-3 win at Canisius, tying this season’s NCAA single-game high.

Longest Active Team Winning Streaks:

6 games, Clarkson (began Feb. 7 at Princeton)
5 games, Minnesota State (began Feb. 1 at St. Thomas)
4 games, Bemidji State (began Feb. 7 at Michigan Tech)

Longest Active Point Streaks:

15 games, F T.J. Hughes (Michigan)
- 9-14—23, began Dec. 14 vs. Wisconsin
12 games, F Ryan Leonard (Boston College)
- 14-8—22, began Jan. 17 vs. Providence
10 games, F Ryan Johnson (Alaska Anchorage)
- 2-10—12, began Jan. 11 at Niagara
10 games, F Cole O’Hara (UMass)
- 9-9—18, began Jan. 18 vs. Merrimack
9 games, F Lukas Sillinger (Arizona State)
- 5-10—15, began Jan. 25 vs. Colorado College

Longest Active Goal Streaks:

4 games, Ryan Leonard (Boston College)
- 4-3—7, began Feb. 14 vs. UMass
4 games, Ayrton Martino (Clarkson)
- 6-6—12, began Feb. 14 vs. Dartmouth
4 games, Jack Ricketts (Quinnipiac)
- 5-2—7, began Feb. 14 at Union

College Hockey Inc. Resources:

Did you know? 93% of NCAA Division I men’s hockey players earn their degree!